Vladimir Alekseevich Gilyarovsky (1855-1935) - Russian writer, journalist, well-known descriptor of Moscow customs. In circles of like-minded people, he was known by the nickname "Uncle Gilyai." A colorful personality, a skilled humorist and satirist, Gilyarovsky served as the prototype for Ataman Sirko for Ilya Repin's painting The Cossacks (1891). Among the works of the Friends and Meetings collection are the stories Unexpected Joy, Under the Merry Goat, Friends. Other narratives are combined into literary collections "Moscow and Muscovites", "People of the Theater".